Transportation

TechCrunch Mobility: Jeff Bezos backs a secretive EV startup and Lucid snaps up Nikola’s assets 

Welcome back to TechCrunch Mobility — your central hub for news and insights on the future of transportation. Sign up here for free — just click TechCrunch Mobility! Tariffs, tariffs, tariffs. If there is one certainty in this uncertain moment, it’s this: U.S. tariff policy is likely to change again. As of Friday morning, there […]

TechCrunch Mobility: Jeff Bezos backs a secretive EV startup and Lucid snaps up Nikola’s assets  Read More »

Nikola founder Trevor Milton accused of trying to derail bankruptcy case

A court hearing on the sale of bankrupt electric truck startup Nikola’s assets to Lucid Motors was going smoothly on Friday. No objections had been filed to the transaction, and Delaware bankruptcy judge Thomas Horan verbally approved it without hesitation. Until, that is, a lawyer piped up on the Zoom call toward the end of

Nikola founder Trevor Milton accused of trying to derail bankruptcy case Read More »

Parallel Systems is building autonomous electric rail for short-distance freight

The business of moving goods in the United States is dominated by trucks, which handles about two-thirds of the 20.2 billion tons of freight that’s transported annually. Parallel Systems founder and CEO Matt Soule wants to change that by putting a modern autonomous and electric twist on the centuries-old railroad system.  The Los Angeles-based company

Parallel Systems is building autonomous electric rail for short-distance freight Read More »

Hacked documents reveal guide to serving Elon Musk on private jets

A recent breach of Berkshire Hathaway-owned private jet company NetJets has revealed a guide for flight attendants serving Elon Musk, per a Bloomberg report. The memo offers an interesting glimpse into the personal preferences of the world’s richest man. Some of the preferences are surprising for the CEO of Tesla, a company dedicated to sustainability.

Hacked documents reveal guide to serving Elon Musk on private jets Read More »

Lucid Motors wins bankruptcy auction for Nikola’s Arizona factory and other assets

EV startup Lucid Motors has emerged as a surprise winner in the bankruptcy auction for electric trucking company Nikola’s Arizona factory and other assets, according a late Thursday night court filing. Lucid committed around $30 million in cash and non-cash considerations in exchange for the factory, Nikola’s lease on its Phoenix headquarters, and “certain machinery,

Lucid Motors wins bankruptcy auction for Nikola’s Arizona factory and other assets Read More »

Bezos-backed EV startup Slate Auto’s pickup truck spotted in the wild

Just one day after TechCrunch revealed that Jeff Bezos is backing a secretive EV startup called Slate Auto, an early version of the company’s low-cost electric pickup truck was spotted in the wild. Reddit user u/discostranger09 posted a photo to the r/whatisthiscar subreddit on Wednesday of a small, dark gray two-seater pickup truck on a

Bezos-backed EV startup Slate Auto’s pickup truck spotted in the wild Read More »

NHTSA’s self-driving safety staff reportedly ‘disproportionally affected’ by DOGE cuts

The cuts that Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency made at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in February “disproportionately affected” employees working on vehicle automation safety, according to The Financial Times. That division was formed in 2023 and therefore included a number of staffers who were still in their initial probationary hiring period, which

NHTSA’s self-driving safety staff reportedly ‘disproportionally affected’ by DOGE cuts Read More »

Polestar EV sales jump in Q1 on discounts like its ‘Tesla conquest’ bonus

Swedish electric vehicle maker Polestar saw its first-quarter sales jump 76% compared to the same period in 2024 after it began offering discounts and other promotions, including ones geared towards locking in Tesla owners. Polestar sold 12,304 cars in the first three months of the year compared to 6,975 in Q1 2024. Sales were relatively

Polestar EV sales jump in Q1 on discounts like its ‘Tesla conquest’ bonus Read More »